get me off this crazy thing

So after some deliberation, I think I've figured out how to spend my tax return. :D :D Some of it is earmarked to go into savings to pay me back for a new mattress I bought in December, and some of it is earmarked to pay down a credit card, but the rest is up for grabs -- sort of. There is, in reality, not that much but whatever.

I have some dental work coming up I should probably save more for, and I want to buy some of Cheri Huber's books, not to mention 2 big trips coming up in the summer (well, one big trip to europe, hopefully, and another horseback riding 4 day adventure) but the real debate is whether to get an iPhone, or an iPad, or BOTH. hah.

There is also a ton of horseback riding gear that I want...

Sadly, my refund does not have a magical extension charm. It can't really cover all that, but I think the iPhone is definite, since its supposed to be finally available for verizon and all that. I can't upgrade (if I want my discount) until the end of Feb. so the timing works out unless verizon explodes or something.

I REALLY want an iPad, but it's gonna have to wait.

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In other news, I'm almost to the end of The Wire, season 2, and I'm getting really into it! I really like everyone, even the criminals have a certain charm. I'm eager to see where these characters go, how they change over the course of the life of the show. I'm spoiled for one or two things, but mostly am watching blind. I love that! lol. I love watching a TV show and knowing you're in for "stuff" and having no clue what that will be.

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For reasons that frankly I can't entirely remember, I started listening to the ENTIRE Dune series cycle on audio books. After some debate I decided to include the last two books written by Herbert's son and Kevin Anderson.

It's been... interesting? Dune remains pretty incredible as a stand alone book. I had read it several times as a teenager and again in college but haven't reread it in years, certainly not since I started writing, and I was pretty astonished to realize how influential it has been on so much of my writing.

The rest of the series is on some pretty heavy (spicy?) crack. And just gets more so as you continue. I don't know how to feel about much of it, particularly the role of women in the entire series. He keeps to pretty rigid gender roles but then by the end makes women essentially the rulers of the known (crazycakes) universe. Of course they're basically homicidal sex-crazed maniacs... they're either "whores" or "witches." So, I guess nothing new there! lol. And let's not get into the whole axlotl tanks business...

Also, this might be a petty peeve in light of all there is to discuss about the Dune series, but I find it *so* aggravating when an author is not true to the internal logic of the universe they're creating.

But it's still been an interesting ride, and I look forward to finishing one day before I'm as old as Duke Leto II. hah. (and I was rather amused to realize that Methos is STILL older. :D)